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Throughout history, the family members of James Garfield discussed openly about his remarkable life but avoided talking about his violent end. We were aware what had happened, that he was gunned down in a railway depot,” notes one of his family members. “We learned about the story in publications but, somehow, we just skimmed through it.”

Revived Interest in a Overlooked Leader

This transformed in 2011 with the issuing of a historical book, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's unfinished life. The book has now resulted in a television production titled the presidential series, starring a talented performer as the commander-in-chief and another skilled actor as the drifter who gunned him down.

The series promises to illuminate Garfield, who rose from poverty to the White House during the economic era only to fall victim to its bitter partisan conflicts. His time in office was cut short after only several months not only by the killer's weapon but by medical malpractice – an incident now frequently ignored while the assassinations of President Lincoln and John F Kennedy continue to intrigue the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a legal professional, he was a religious leader, he was a land worker. He was so many things which also influenced his personality and his approach and everything that we know about him the relatives maintain with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the White House

Garfield was the last president born in a log cabin in Cuyahoga County in 1831. His parent passed away when he was very young, leaving his mom, Eliza, to raise five children in hard times. An voracious learner, Garfield worked on canal boats to generate income for an education.

He pursued jurisprudence, was ordained as minister, became president of Hiram College in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he married a former classmate, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have a large family. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a righteous fight against forced servitude and rose to the rank of major general.

“When I started researching him, I couldn't believe it. He was remarkably smart. He was fearless. He was innovative for the time. He was caring. He was a decent human being and would have been a remarkable commander-in-chief had he survived.”

Public Life and Shocking Selection

Garfield was persuaded by President Lincoln to depart military life when he was selected to the legislative branch, where he would work as a Republican for nearly two decades. He was ardent advocate of African American voting rights, viewing it as a matter of justice and the realization of a military promise.

“The speech he gave on the legislative arena will affect you emotionally. He was an remarkable speaker and this issue was very important to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the political organization was fundamentally fractured between the “faction members”, led by an influential figure, who supported a additional presidency for former president, and the “rival group”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a backer of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, delegates began looking for a compromise. Garfield's powerful oration proposing Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a voice from the crowd unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a rush of supporters made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To placate the Stalwart faction, another politician, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the presidential race Garfield beat the rival politician to become the sole representative of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Truncated Term and Government Conflicts

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is extremely rare and maybe special for the American presidency is he hadn't campaigned aggressively. It's not that he had completely dismissed it but he was thrust into it.”

The major battle of Garfield's limited administration was his confrontation with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling demanded control over political positions in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the nation's leader”. He selected a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The dispute escalated into a visible struggle but Garfield defeated Conkling in the Senate. Facing a public failure, Conkling and his junior senator resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was confirmed. It was a significant win for the presidential control over the faction system and for the cause of reform over “boss rule”.

The Gunman and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being stalked by a psychologically troubled person who embodied the problematic element of the patronage system. Charles Guiteau was a drifter with a history of occupational setbacks, psychological problems and childhood trauma. He had been unsuccessful as a legal professional, financial agent, preacher and member of a alternative community.

“He was mentally ill and his unique form of delusion was fantasy. He always believed that divine selection for significance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a way to accomplishment: politics. Caught up in the drama of the presidential race, he prepared and gave an unimportant address, and became certain in his thoughts that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this logic, Guiteau reckoned he had earned a high-level government job. He went to the capital and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other officials, insisting to be made the US consul in Paris — a role for which he had no experience. He became such a nuisance that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Shooting and Medical Malpractice

On 2 July 1881, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was traveling from DC for his alumni event. As he passed through the train depot, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, produced an weapon from his clothing and fired multiple rounds in the back.

Garfield shouted: “Why is this occurring?” and collapsed on the station floor. When a {police officer|law